Pete Hoekstra

This article is about the American Congressman. For the Dutch soccer player, see Peter Hoekstra (footballer).

Pete Hoekstra
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan's 2nd district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 1993
Preceded by	Carl Pursell
Personal details
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Diane M. Johnson
Children	Erin Hoekstra, Allison Hoekstra, Bryan Hoekstra
Residence	Holland, Michigan
Alma mater	Hope College (B.A.) University of Michigan (M.B.A.)
Occupation	Politician

Peter "Pete" Hoekstra (born October 30, 1953) is an American member of Congress from the U.S. state of Michigan. A Conservative Republican, Hoekstra has represented Michigan's 2nd congressional district since 1992. He received a B.A. in political science from Hope College in 1975 and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Michigan in 1977.

Political History

The district had been held for twenty six years by Guy Vander Jagt, longtime chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee. Hoekstra rode his bicycle across the district, charging that Vander Jagt had served in Congress for too long. He scored a monumental upset, winning by almost six percent. This primary win was tantamount to election in the 2nd district, the "most Republican" district in Michigan (Republicans have held the district for all but four years since it was created in 1873). (Hoekstra continues to ride his bicycle across the district every summer, and for his 2010 gubernatorial campaign will also be riding across the state.

In 2004, Hoekstra did not meet his initial term limits pledge by announcing that he would run for a seventh term, citing his membership on the Select Committee on Intelligence. In 2006, Hoekstra's Leadership PAC (the Mileage Fund) raised nearly $160,000 in Policial Action Contributions from such diverse contributors as the Teamsters, Michigan Credit Union League, and Little Planet Books.

Hoekstra faced no significant opposition in the Republican primary or in the general election (as in his previous five reelection campaigns) and went on to secure his seventh term. Shortly after the primary, he was named chairman of the committee, succeeding Porter Goss, who became Director of the Central Intelligence Agency.

Hoekstra has a conservative voting record, consistent with the conservative nature of the 2nd congressional district. However, he opposes amending the Constitution to prohibit flag desecration.

Hoekstra has announced his candidacy for the 2010 Michigan gubernatorial race.

Committee assignments

• Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (Ranking Member)
  • As ranking member of the full committee, Rep. Hoekstra may serve as an ex officio member of all subcommittees
• Committee on Education and Labor
  • Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education
  • Subcommittee on Workforce Protections

Caucus memberships

• Founding chairman of the Education Freedom Caucus
• Founding chairman of the Congressional Caucus on the Netherlands

2006 election

Hoekstra had no primary opponent. In November he was opposed by the Democratic candidate Kimon Kotos , who was also his 2004 opponent. Hoekstra defeated Kotos 183,518 votes to 87,361 votes .

2008 election

See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Michigan, 2008

Hoekstra ran for re-election in 2008 against Fred Johnson, Associate Professor of History at Hope College. He beat Johnson by 215,471 to 119,959 votes.

2010 Gubernatorial Race

Main article: Michigan gubernatorial election, 2010

In December 2008, Hoekstra said he would not seek re-election to his U.S. House seat in 2010, and instead campaign to be Michigan's governor. Hoekstra joins Mike Bouchard, the Oakland County Sheriff and former state senator, business person Rick Snyder, state Sen. Tom George and Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox as 2010 Republican gubernatorial candidates.

Criticism of the Islamic Society of North America

Hoekstra and a fellow Republican sent an open letter to then Attorney General, Alberto Gonzales regarding the Islamic Society of North America as blogged about via the Washington Times: In a letter to then-Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, Reps. Peter Hoekstra, Michigan Republican and ranking member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and Sue Myrick, North Carolina Republican, called the Justice Department's involvement a "grave mistake."

"In light of the threat that our nation ... is currently facing from radical jihadists, and because of the president's commitment to fighting the war on terror on all fronts, we believe it is a grave mistake to provide legitimacy to an organization with extremist origins, leadership and a radical agenda," the lawmakers said.

The amendment, which was approved by a voice vote to a spending measure, states that "no funds appropriated under this act may be used to support a conference sponsored by any organization named as an unindicted co-conspirator by the government in any criminal prosecution." .

Weapons of mass destruction (WMD)

On June 22, 2006, Hoekstra made headlines by announcing at a press conference in the Capitol that weapons of mass destruction had been located in Iraq in the form of 500 chemical weapons.

A number of other media outlets disputed the claims made by Hoekstra and Rick Santorum regarding the existence of weapons of mass destruction, reporting that the claims were disputed by both Pentagon officials, the Duelfer Report, and the intelligence community.

On November 3, 2006, The New York Times reported that a website created at the request of Hoekstra and Senator Pat Roberts was found to contain detailed information that could potentially be helpful to those seeking to produce nuclear weapons. The website was shut down on November 2 following questioning by The New York Times.

As of September 17, 2007 some news outlets reported that the Congressional committee Hoekstra had overseen had created "erroneous" and "misleading" reports about Iran's nuclear capabilities. "Among the committee's assertions is that Iran is producing weapons-grade uranium at its facility in the town of Natanz. The IAEA called that "incorrect", noting that weapons-grade uranium is enriched to a level of 90 percent or more. Iran has enriched uranium to 3.5 percent under IAEA monitoring."

2009 Twitter Incident and resulting Internet meme

On June 17, Hoekstra posted a twitter comment likening the brutal oppression of the Iranian people to the plight of House Republicans The resulting meme pokes fun of the tweets use of grandiose exaggerations and comparisons to link ones situation to a wider tragedy or similar event.

Repatriation of Yemeni captives in Guantanamo

On December 27, 2009, Hoekstra commented on reports that Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, who had allegedly tried to set off a suicide bomb on Northwest Airlines Flight 253 on December 25, 2009, had subsequently confessed to being trained and equipped in Yemen. Hoekstra called for a halt to the repatriation of Yemeni captives in Guantanamo.

See also

• WMD theories in the aftermath of the 2003 Iraq War

External links

• U.S. Congressman Pete Hoekstra official House site
• Pete Hoekstra for Governor official campaign site
• PeteHoekstra.com Unofficial anti-Hoekstra site
• United States Congress. "Pete Hoekstra (id: h000676)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
• Federal Election Commission - Peter Hoekstra campaign finance reports and data
• On the Issues - Peter Hoekstra issue positions and quotes
• OpenSecrets.org - Peter Hoekstra campaign contributions
• Project Vote Smart - Representative Peter 'Pete' Hoekstra (MI) profile
• SourceWatch Congresspedia - Pete Hoekstra profile
• Washington Post - Congress Votes Database: Pete Hoekstra voting record